


The End Is Just The Beginning

by jade_lil



Category: Arashi (Band)
Genre: Arashi's hiatus made me do this, Friendship, Gen, JunBa - Freeform, M/M, Ohmiya - Freeform, Sakumoto - Freeform, sakuraiba - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-06
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-10-23 11:38:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17682722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jade_lil/pseuds/jade_lil
Summary: They’re here for a reason, the five of them, together. They’re all here as Arashi, for Arashi, circumstances be damned.





	The End Is Just The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> This one is supposed to happen just before the press conference did.

_ [(Originally posted in LJ)](https://ohmiya-haven.livejournal.com/157869.html) _

 

Jun  
  
  
It’s not the announcement that worries him – hell, he knows that every single thing they’ve worked on, in front of the cameras and most especially behind them during the past year and a half, was simply to point them towards this exact moment – no, not really.  
  
It’s Leader, of course _, of course_ , because he’s certain – all of them are, to be honest – that not everyone is bound to understand them after this.  
  
He honestly didn’t understand any of it either, at first. Ohno was, as always, the vaguest person ever, not to mention stubborn, so there really weren’t much way to talk him out of his decision, when it was obvious that he’d already put his mind to it.  
  
And it wasn’t like they didn’t try. They did, all of them did, of course, but because Ohno really is stubborn to a fault, no one was able to convince him to reconsider, and even Nino’s normally fail-safe power of persuasion seemed to have lost its magic at the get-go.  
  
He spies Aiba nodding at Sho’s general direction before he is stepping away, hand lingering on top of Aiba’s right knee and squeezing. Ohno and Nino are talking in hushed voices on the opposite couch, one looking forlornly lost while the other is obviously putting on a tough front.  
  
Well, he’s not the only one who does. They all have to, at this point, but he knows that despite the rather lengthy preparation they had for this one, deciding moment, he could say that not one of them looks the least bit ready now.  
  
How could they, when no one really expected this to happen? Not after almost twenty years, and certainly not after Hawaii. Sure, the lingering fear stayed years after Ohno confessed his desire to leave during Arashi’s early years, but his decision to stay with them despite the desire to be set free had won over, as he’d stated repeatedly back then.  
  
Obviously, that desire hadn’t waned, nor it had been tamed to the ground much as they hoped it did. It was just there, lying dormant, but still present. Not something worth worrying about, not anymore. For a while, they all believe in this, until a year and a half ago when it crept right back into the surface, haunting their Leader years after, that desire coming back stronger than it’s ever been.  
  
His fear had been right all along. And that’s exactly why they ended up right here, now, about to tell people something he’s never imagined saying so soon, not in a few years, at least, but has to anyway.  
  
He doesn’t even realize Sho’s came over until the older man is speaking to him.  
  
“Hey, you okay?” Sho asks, tapping his forearm. He shakes himself out of daze, clears his throat noisily in answer and looks down. He hates this. He hates feeling like this, hopeless and uncertain, even though he knows that the last thing he’s ought to be feeling before he goes out there is uncertainty.  
  
They’ve prepared for this; they’ve talked countless times to know exactly what to say for him to fail Leader now. He could do this; he promised Leader that he’s got Leader’s back no matter what, they all do, and he does, all four of them do, and that no matter what happens after this, he intends to keep his promise.  
  
Even though he knows for a fact that he’s more than a little terrified.  
  
“Jun?”  
  
He blinks the uncertainties away, and looks up to the tiredness marring the edges of Sho’s eyes, and nods. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m okay,” he says, shifting a bit and nodding his head towards the other three on the opposite side of the room. “How are they holding up?”  
  
Sho shrugs. It’s almost seemed careless, but he knows it’s anything but. Sho’s been taking much more than half of his fair share of the burden already, more than what he could probably carry on his own shoulders ever since that night Ohno made his intentions known, but they all know Sho doesn’t have to.  
  
They’re here for a reason, the five of them, together. They’re all here as Arashi, for Arashi, circumstances be damned. They’ve walked together for twenty years, carrying Arashi’s name and the bond they formed with it since the five of them boarded that boat in Hawaii as children, with the promise _to create storm throughout the world_ , and they’re going to stand out there in a few minutes, twenty years later, holding their heads high as Arashi, for Arashi.  
  
“How are _you_ holding up?” Sho counters, reaching up to squeeze his shoulder. He chuckles, half-hoping he could somehow put his emotions into words without actually sounding like a total psycho but knows that at this point, Sho doesn’t really need him to.  
  
Sho knows exactly how it feels. It’s just that it’s easier to hear the word equivalent of said feeling spilling from someone else’s lips rather than his own.  
  
“I’m fine.” he says, not really meaning it. How could he, he’s not fine, none of them are, obviously, but he guesses their feelings matter too little at this point.  
  
“You don’t look fine, Jun –“  
  
“To be perfectly fair, Sho-san, none of us _is_ fine, to begin with. Let’s just do this, and get it over and done with.”  
  
Sho gives him a look, sighs and makes this face along with the hand gesture that cracks him up everytime, finding himself somewhat distracted despite the seemingly unfair circumstances looming over their heads.  
  
“Hey, come on, we’ve been over this countless times. It’s gonna be okay.”  Sho says, and his quick segue from being playful to being serious and in control, warms Jun despite himself.  
  
“Arashi-san, be ready in five!” someone hollers from the door, and it is somehow enough to prompt the five of them in action.  
  
Sho steps back just as he is moving forward, mumbling, “I’m prepared for the worst, but hey, everything turning out okay after this is fine, too, to be honest.”  
  
He barely heard Sho’s answering chuckles, just made sure he’s breathed enough air into his lungs as the five of them meet in the middle, forming a circle, the way they always do in concerts, catching each other’s gazes and nodding. His throat is too tight he could barely speak, but he knows he has to, watching Leader throws his hand first, lips pursed. Nino follows right after, putting his hand on top of Ohno’s own, as the rest of them follow.  
  
“Let’s do this?” Ohno says, and it honestly sounded more of a plea than a question, and for one, heartbreaking moment, they all feel like weeping.  
  
The four of them smile instead, and nods accordingly.  
  
“Yeah, let’s do this.”


End file.
